


Otherworldly Love

by Yasraena



Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Action/Adventure, Dragonborn - Freeform, F/M, Magic, Modern Girl in Skyrim, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating May Change, Realm Hopping, Romance, Skyrim - Freeform, modern girl falls into skyrim!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-13
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2020-01-12 11:38:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 17,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18445787
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yasraena/pseuds/Yasraena
Summary: Kara Black, a brilliant architect, wake up in a world she thought was only a fantasy video game that her brother played. She become spectator of one of the event who will lead the last Dragonborn to rise and to become the hero of Skyrim, becoming accidently at the same time his travel companion. Athnaris Kaeius, an half-altmer mercenary, suddenly learn that he's more than just a warrior-mage and inherits of a difficult travel companion.Switch POV between chapters.I was little bit inspired by DeenaTweety and her work Leaving an Impression for this fic. I really love this modern-girl-in-skyrim theme and i'm an hopeless romantic, so we'll see how it evolve.Warning, i'm not a native english speaker (french speaker here), my syntax, grammar and orthography may be really bad sometimes. Have some indulgence, s'il vous plaît...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I always dreamed of being transported into the world of a video game, so I did this favor to our heroine.  
> Update: Correction done 2019-04-14 19h39
> 
> It's basically the intro of Skyrim lived by Kara.  
> \- Kara POV -

After a long day of work, Kara returned home to sleep at her parents’ house. They were sheltering her for the week because of the renovation of her apartment and now, she was forced to sleep in the room of her nineteen years old brother, Alek. The problem was not the lack of intimacy itself; it was her brother who was always playing some game on his computer or on his console, filling the room with noise and light. Therefore, Kara, heading to the room, was expecting Alek to play on his computer and to prevent her from a good night of sleep. Surprisingly, he was already asleep but his console was still open on a game. If she remembered right, this game was his brother’s favourite, a game about swords and dragons named Skyrim. With a sort of relief, Kara tried to close the console. Suddenly, at the moment she pushed the button, a sudden flash of light came from the screen. Kara lost consciousness.

When she wakes up, she was surprisingly cold. She looked around her with confusion. Kara was outside... On a road... In a boreal-like forest... If that wasn’t enough, she was now dressed in rags and sitting in a carriage! Oh, and her hands were tied... The young woman was in choc. How the hell did she ended up here? Was she kidnapped after falling asleep? Was that a bad prank from stupid teenagers? A deep masculine voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She suddenly realized that she wasn’t alone. A tall muscular man with long blond hair and blue ice eyes was sitting in front of her, dressed in Viking-like armour with a blue tabard decorated with a symbol of a bear. The medieval dressed man looked at her with a friendly smile and said:

''Hey you! You are finally awake! You were trying to cross the border, right? You walked right into this Imperial ambush, same as us, that mercenary and that thief over there.''

Before she could say anything to that nonsense, a smaller man with short brown hair and tired looking brown eyes began to talk beside him.

''Damned Stormcloaks... Skyrim was fine until you came along... The Empire was nice and lazy. If they hadn’t been looking for you, I’ve could have stolen that horse and been halfway to Hammerfell...''

The supposed thief turned his gaze on her and says:

''You there! You, me and that half-breed, we shouldn’t be here! It’s the Stormcloaks the Empire wants!''

When he said ‘’Half-breed’’, she noticed the really tall man at her left. He was strange looking, but in a good way. The man had high cheekbones, an angular jaw and sharp features with a chin dimple. His skin had that golden ivory colour, almost like it could shine of metallic gold in direct sunlight. He had big feline eyes as blue as the sky. A long scar covered the left side of his face, avoiding his eye but crossing his eyebrow. The scar stopped just in the middle of his cheek. Thin lips and a straight and fine nose were completing the otherworldly features of his face. His particular face was framed by wavy brown hair cut to the shoulders and slightly pointed ears were peeking out of his hair. The man had broad shoulders and a muscular body, making him imposing. He looked at the two other men with an annoyed look, like all of this was pointless trivialities. Immediately after the declaration of the thief, the blond man says:

''We are all brothers and sisters in binds now, thief!''

Turning his gaze toward the last passenger of the carriage, a man with long chestnut hair, rich clothes with fur and a gag on his mouth, the thief asked:

''What’s wrong with him?''

The blond snapped back immediately:

''Watch your tongue! You’re speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King!''

Kara was confused. Imperials, High King, weird looking guys and medieval clothing… Where the hell did she fall? Then she remembered the thief talking about Skyrim like it was a place… Could that be possible? She decided to let them talk to try to know more. Then, the thief continues to speak:

''Ulfric, the jarl of Windhelm? You’re the leader of the rebellion… But if they captured you, oh Gods, where are they taking us?''

He seemed frightened as the blond answer:

''I don’t where we going, but Sovngard awaits.''

The thief began to panic and says:

''No, no, it can’t be happening! This isn’t happening!''

Softly, the blond asked to the thief:

''Hey, which village are you from, horse thief?''

''Why do you care?''

''A Nord last thoughts should be of home…''

''Rorikstead. I’m… I’m from Rorikstead.''

With the end of this exchange, the young woman tried to look around her to understand where they were going despite knowing if she was really in that damned video game or not. Turning her gaze toward the front of the cart, she saw another cart of prisoners leading the way to a big cobble wall. But it wasn’t just a cobble wall… It was an entire small city of stone! The medieval city was rather plain. A round tower, some houses and cubic stone constructions. The architect she was struggled with herself not to be unnerved by that lazy architecture. She couldn't blame them for favouring efficacity over beauty. At least it looked solid and that simplicity was easier to reconstruct.Why was she thinking about that when, at the looks of it, she was literally in another world, in the medieval age, prisoner of some sort of empire with rebels who could be directly heading to a quick execution? That realization made, she began to panic for real. Tears began to fall on her cheeks as she was trembling and questioning herself; Why that happen to her, of all the people? Will she be able to go back home? Now lost in her frightened mind, she lost track of what the people around her were saying.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm happy you guys liked the first chapter. I will try to continue to post that regulary.  
> Update: Corrections done 2019-04-14 19h34  
>  
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

The tall half-elf was lost in his thoughts when he heard the discreet sobbing of the girl beside him. The Nords in the cart, as always, didn’t seem to understand that some people were not ready to die for their honour and their scary discussion about Death is surely the reason why the little human was crying and shaking. Like he could do something about it… Helgen was in sight and they’re going to die, it’s something he accepted an hour ago. At least, he will go join his sister in the afterlife… At the thought of his precious sister, he turned his gaze toward the young woman. She was a bit older than her, but she looks nothing like her. The young prisoner was a small woman, breton size, but look weirdly Nord. She had a fair pale skin without any imperfections. Her oval face had sweet features, round almond eyes as green as emeralds, a cute little upturned nose and full lips with a pronounced Cupid’s bow. Her hair with perfect curls was more red than blood, it almost looked like it was made of ruby, and was so long that it finished at her hips.Thin with curves at the right place, she was undeniably pretty. The hireling asked himself how this pretty feminine thing ends up here, in the wilderness, ready to die with rebel soldiers. It’s a shame that he will never know before Death. The shout of one of the Imperial soldiers catch his attention while they were entering Helgen.

''General Tullius! Sir, the headsman is waiting!''

So, the General Tullius himself was here...Not surprising if they actually catch Ulfric. The General answered from the head of the convoy.

''Good, let’s get this over with.''

The horse thief, hearing the soldier, began a prayer to the Divines:

''Shor, Mara, Dibella, Kynareth, Akatosh, the Divines, please help me!''

When they passed the entrance of Helgen, the Stormcloak soldier showed him by a move of the head the General on a horse, talking with a altmer woman in Thalmor robe mounted on a horse. She was escorted by two elves soldiers.

''Look at him, General Tullius, the military governor. And it looks like the Thalmor are with him… Damn elves… But they had something to do with this…''

Turning his gaze on the young sobbing woman, the Stormcloak tried to reconfort her with bribes of memory:

''This is Helgen. I used to be sweet on a girl from here. I wonder if Vilod is still making this mead with juniper berries… Funny, when i was a boy, Imperial walls and towers used to make me feel so safe…''

The girl, distracted by the memories of the soldier, stopped sobbing and looked at him with desperate eyes. The carts started parking themselves in the town and the thief asked:

''Why are we stopping?''

He was answered quickly by the Stormcloak:

''Why, do you think? End of the line… Let’s go, shouldn’t keep the Gods waiting for us!''

The thief interjected when they were getting out of the cart:

''No wait! We’re not rebels!''

''Face your death with some courage, thief!''

''You’ve got to tell them, we’re not with you! This is a mistake!''

An Imperial officer, a hard-looking woman shouts to the prisoners:

''Step toward the block when we call your name! One at the time!''

Athnaris asked himself if he was so well known that he could actually be on that list. He had a successful career being a mercenary before the death of his sister but he was more known in Hammerfell than in Cyrodil or in Skyrim. He almost didn’t hear the mumbling of the Stormcloak soldier before him about ‘’Damned Empire’’. Another Imperial soldier, a young man Nord began the call:

"Ulfric Stormcloak, jarl of Windhelm!''

Ulfric, without hesitation, walked toward the block with pride.

''Ralof of Riverwood''

The annoying Stormcloak soldier finally walked toward the block.

"Lokir of Rorikstead''

The thief, Lokir, interjected another time while walking toward the officer.

"No! I’m not a rebel! You can’t do this!"

Then, out of panic, he began to run to flee the soldiers and the headsman block. Without any order from anyone, he got shot. A arrow went straight to his back, killing him right here. Athnaris was kind of indifferent about this but heard the girl next to him resumed her sobbing more intensely than before. It was like she never encountered violence in her life… The officer from earlier said after that:

"Anyone else feels like running?"

Then, the soldier who was calling them looked at the mercenary with a confused face and said:

"You, step forward!''

The half-elf obeyed without really thinking. What was the problem with him?

"Who are you?"

"Athnaris Kaeius from Hammerfell."

"You picked a bad time to come visit Skyrim, half-elf. Captain? What do we do? He’s not on the list."

The captain, without even looking at him, answered:

"Forget the list. He goes on the block."

"By orders, Captain."

The soldier looked sincerely sad when he turned to him and said:

"I’m sorry… We will make sure your body will be sent to your family in Hammerfell."

Nodding with a frown, Athnaris walked toward the block with dignity, or at least, he tried. Facing the execution setting, he heard the soldier calling the girl:

"You, you’re not on the list either… Who are you?"

Between two sobbing, she answered:

"I’m Kara Black."

A silence said that the captain made a sign to the soldier and the girl come beside him, still crying but more quietly than before. So, it would seem it was the end. He was sincerely disappointed with his death but he doesn’t really have something to say about it. While he was thinking, Tullius was scolding Ulfric but nothing really interesting happen. The priestess of Arkay began her prayer:

"As we recommend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the Eight Divines upon..."

"For the love of Talos, shut up and let’s get this over with!"

A Stormcloak soldier had interrupted the prayer and walked in front of the block, placing himself to be beheaded. The captain, with a frown, said:

"As you wish…"

Taunting them a little more, he said:

"Come on! I haven’t got all morning! My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?"

Oh, these Nords… So eager to die. Promptly, the executioner beheaded him with a minor splash of blood. A shocked gasp came from the young woman on his side. The captain seemed eager to finish this as she said:

"Next! The half-breed!"

There he was. He walked calmly to position himself on the block, hearing the sobbing of the girl intensified. At least, someone will cry his death… He locked eyes with the headsman and then, in the background, an enormous dragon, black as night, just posed himself on the tower and let out a roar so powerful the executioner fell and Oblivion was unleashed on Nirn...


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait. School and work kept me away from my computer.
> 
>  
> 
> \- Kara POV -

The poor Kara didn’t understand what was happening. The weird guy - Athnaris, if she remembered right- had the head on the execution block and was going to die and then, the most horrifying and magnificent beast she had ever seen just kind of appeared on the tower. It was a dragon. A real dragon. And that very real monster let out a roar induced with such power that meteors just began to fall from the sky. Everything basically turns to chaos. As people ran to seek cover, she was just frozen there. Kara felt so powerless. That thing unleashed apocalypse on them with only a roar. She was going to die. She is never gonna see her brother, her mom and her dad again. Ralof, the blond guy from earlier, saved her by taking her hand to drag her and Athnaris in another tower. From petrified, her body turned to a ball of adrenaline. She just felt the urge to run as fast as she can, far away from this monster, from this chaos, from this world…

Kara remembered that she jumped the space between a tower and an inn, run through flames and blood. Soldiers were dying all around, the only thing that never changed was the sight of Athnaris running in front of her, guiding her. Then, she was stopped by the strong arms of someone. She battled against it, she wanted to go away so bad, it was frustrating. The deep voice of a man shouts to her:

''Stop it! You’re in a safe place for now!"

At the sound of the voice, the young woman froze again, her adrenaline going down drastically. Without it, she finally can feel all her tiredness, fear, sadness and despair. Her mind broke. She began to cry in the arms that were holding her. The linen shirt she was crying on covered a warm body who smelled of pine, spices and sweat, the smell of a man. For long minutes, the man held her through this crisis until she calmed down. When her tears were dried, she looked up. The blue eyes of the ‘’half-breed’’ were locked on hers, his unusual face distorted with worries. He let her go and asked:

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes, I think."

She answered, getting a look at her new environment. It was a room of good dimensions , and all the walls were made of stone. Simple wood beds, two chests and rudimentary furniture; they were in the garrison quarters. Really, the military deco style didn’t even change between the two worlds… While she was observing the room, Athnaris changed himself from linen clothes to imperial armour taken from the chest and put a sword at his belt. He didn’t seem to care, but she made sure not to look at him. She was tempted though, the man was kind of handsome. Her weird thoughts were chased immediately by the tone of Athnaris:

"Perfect. I cannot protect you and hold you while you cry at the same time. Maybe you will not be as much a burden I thought you would be…"

The ego of Kara was hurt, but she tried to contain her temper. Her? A burden? Pff... She answered:

"Then why do want to bring me if protecting me is so painful?"

"Because you are a innocent who never even touch a sword and I have to get you out of this Oblivion of a place."

He was so sure and direct. How can he claim to know her like that? The worst was that he was right. The only blade she ever held was a kitchen knife. With pride, she asked:

"What makes you say that?"

"Your hands. Delicate, soft and almost without any blemish. The hands of an artist or a noble, not a fighter or even a farmer."

Oh, damn… He was good. She bit her inferior lips in frustration. For whatever reason, she wanted to prove herself to him even if she didn’t have to. It was kind of weird. The man snapped her back to reality as he said:

"Now that I’m ready and that you’re okay, we have to go. It will not take long to the dragon to destroy all the ways out of town. We need to find a way through the underground of Helgen. So, follow me and stay behind."

Athnaris exits the room hastily. She tried to follow, but he had long legs and walk a lot faster than her. From behind, she can see they were entering a new room, but something was wrong. When he entered, the young man pulled his sword and a flame appeared in his other hand. Scarred, she takes few steps back, hearing the sound of combat. She dared approach only when she heard Athnaris say:

"They are dead, come here. We don’t have any time to waste."

The unlikely companions continued like that for most of the souterrain, passing the reserves, the cells and the weird old-looking bridges. Athnaris was a skillful fighter, and Kara instinctively know when to hide. It was working great until one of the last rooms. The ‘’half-breed’’, as she still remembered the others called him, as said the room was clear and she was coming to meet him in the middle of it. All of a sudden, something touched her. Something cold, hard and sharp. Pain came one second after. She was hit. Her vision blurred by the pain, she vaguely saw her companion take down the cause of her suffering and she saw a lot blood coming from her stomach. Too much blood. She tried to put her hand on the wound to stop it, but it only paint her palm the same red than her hair without really making it better. She was a bit dizzy and said:

"Athnaris, that’s your name right? We have to get out of here, right now! I begin to feel dizzy…"

"Yes. Kara, please try to stay awake. Don’t fall asleep. Fight!"

Her eyelids were heavy, it was hard to fight. She slowly began to lose part of conscientiousness as he lift her and run toward the last room. She saw the bear, she heard it die. The path began to be filled with light as she began to lose the fight. Kara still had the time to see a blue sky and the black dragon flying over them before she fell asleep completely.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again! Exploring a little bit of Athnaris past.
> 
>  
> 
> -Athnaris POV-

Why he had to travel with the most helpless woman on Nirn? She had absolutely no skills in fighting or thieving or even magic… She was certainly an artist and probably a noble, but not the useful type. She even manages to be wounded while he was fighting. There he was, carrying her in the woods and looking for the closest village, Riverwood. Athnaris had no problem carrying the lightweight Kara in the forest and he was moving fast. He knew that a bandit lair was nearby and that wolves were roaming not far from here. He had to be cautious, for himself and for her... Her... She was occupying too much place in his mind for his taste. Like he cared for a helpless noble girl… Or does he? For the last two hours, all he cared about was the breathing of the fragile red-haired women and the improvised bandage he made on her wound. Her life seemed more important than his, and it was troubling him.

Finally, the vision of the village entrance made him snap back to reality has he starts running toward the inn. The half-elf didn’t like cities at all but, for the sake of Kara, he was willing to spend some time here. Athnaris jostled some people on the way, passing the door of the building with a certain despair. He called for help, his voice sounding like that he was himself dying.

"Please, Innkeeper. She’s wounded! I have gold to pay everything needed!"

A big Nord with dark hair rushed to help him lay her in the bed of a free room. The innkeeper ran for water, bandages, thread and a needle while the mercenary tried to carefully remove the bandage from the young woman. It was bleeding. A lot. It was a miracle that she was not already dead. He had to be fast.

As soon as the supplies arrived, he cleaned the wound and sutured it carefully. His hands were shaking a little and his mind was playing tricks on him as he imagined his sister instead of Kara. As if he still wanted to save her, a year after her death. But Ashera was dead and he could not do anything about it. Kara was still alive and could be saved. Concentrating on this thought, he finished his work, cleaned the blood and put a clean bandage on it. That was all Athnaris could do.

On the chair next to her bed, he sat with a feeling of emptiness. Even the useless girl was worth saving in his heart, for some reason. Ashera had always said that he had a good heart, too good for his own good. Now, for the first time in a while, he felt he had done a good thing and that he was safe. Athnaris turned his gaze on Kara. It was like he saw her for the first time. She wasn't either Nord or Breton. She was something different, something alike Nirn's human races but not quite. She was definitely not from Nirn...

This realization made, everything became clear. If she was not from here, it is possible she did not have to learn to fight and she never saw the violence. She was certainly a sort of monk, who was protected all her life and was just writing and drawing all day. Her reactions became understandable. When she woke up, they had to talk. If what he was suspecting was true, they had to go to Winterhold. Even if he didn’t trust that kind of wizards, it was the fastest and better way to learn more about Kara’s origins and apparition. At least, he hoped… Since then, he only had to wait.

Few hours passed and, thankfully, she was doing better, resting peacefully in the bed with some mumbling in her sleep. Athnaris was reading a book found in the inn. He was not really paying attention to the story, he just read the words without really trying to understand. If he had known, when he left High Rock with Ashera, that he would find himself at the bedside of a woman certainly from another world, waiting for her to recover while crying her sister ... As stupid as he was, he would certainly have left anyway. At the time, all that was important was to get away from their poor life, gain fame and take a burden off their mother's shoulders. And maybe find their father and make him regret leaving them.

Now, all this seemed trivial and naive. There were more important things. With all that, he had almost forgotten the dragon. The dragons were back... At least, he had to warn the Jarl of Whiterun before going to Winterhold... Inside him, something was stirring, as if something in him had awakened in front of the dragon. And that something was proud and required power. His intuition told him that this power would come if he was facing the dragon. It was weird. He knew it was dangerous, too dangerous for him. But still, he was finding the idea thrilling. However, he had to take Kara to Winterhold or any other place where she can be safe while he would pursue his foolish idea. She wasn’t ready to follow him, and he would be egoistic of him to risk her life like that. Maybe he could train her if she wants, but he couldn’t force her to follow his path. He had to remember that she wasn’t from Tamriel or even Nirn and that she might want to go home.

As he was thinking about her, he heard her move and calling a name he never heard before; Alek. She was awakening. He closed the book and turned toward her. With a calm voice, he said:

"It’s okay, Kara. It’s me, Athnaris. You were wounded, take it easy."

Kara opened her eyes slowly, watching him with disbelief. She touched her wound with a pained wince and looked around her. After long seconds, she goes:

"Oh shit, it wasn’t a dream!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait!  
> As i promised, there's the first of the three chapters that will be post today and tomorrow!  
> Also i searched a lot for realistic travel time in Skyrim, i used what seemed right.
> 
> \- Kara POV -

Kara was angry and sad at the same time. Why couldn’t it be a dream? Now, she was definitely sure. She was stuck in this Hell of a place called Skyrim. With a sigh, she looked at her wound and then at Athnaris. The man’s face displayed a mix of worries and questions as he drags his chair closer and asked:

"How could you think it was a dream? We really have to talk about all this…"

"I couldn’t agree more. You look like you have a lot of questions. I’m ready to answer."

Taking a big breath, the half-elf made eye contact with her and began to ask:

"Where are you from, Kara Black?"

She answered with bored tone. It was sure that he will not believe her…

"I’m from Ottawa, in a province called Ontario, in the country of Canada, on the American continent, on the planet Earth. Where are we now?"

"We are in Riverwood, in Skyrim, in the Empire of Cyrodil, on the continent of Tamriel and on the planet Nirn."

He answered as he nodded while absorbing the information she gave. He actually looked like he believed her! A part of the young woman was really happy about this. At least, she didn’t look like she was crazy! Athnaris asked another question:

"So if you’re not from this world, how did you end up on Nirn?"

"I really would like to know this answer, too! Believe me, I really don’t know! One moment, I was closing the game of my brother and the moment after, I was in that cart. And all I know about Skyrim, it’s that there’s a game about it in my world!"

Frowning, he looked at her silently and seemed to think. Then, he sighed and said:

"Maybe I know some people who could know how you end up here. And they can maybe send you back."

Kara’s face brightens up as hope regain her being. There’s a chance to go back home! She could see her brother, her mother and her father again! She tried to get up and was stopped by the pain coming from her wound. Athnaris slightly smiled and said:

"Easy. I know you want to go home, but you’re wounded."

"Yeah, I forgot that detail…"

Athnaris continue to smile as she grimaced. But this smile fades quickly and he adds:

''But to go find those who can help you, we have to go to Winterhold. It’s like a week of travel on foot, approximately, and you’re not ready to travel yet. We have to stay here for a little while… Or at least, you have to stay here."

Kara was speechless for a moment. Was he trying to abandon her here? If so, how was she supposed to go to this Winterhold? She didn’t like the way her thoughts were taking. With a frown, she asked:

"What? You’ll leave me alone here? Where do you want to go and why?"

With a sigh, the mercenary answered:

"I have to. I have to warn the Jarl for the dragon who attack us in Helgen. Do not worry, I’ll leave you some gold to stay in the inn and eat. And maybe some more to buy some new clothes. The people of Riverwood are really kind, you will be able to make some friends and maybe find a little job to occupy yourself while I’m gone. Whiterun is only a day and a half from here. If everything goes as it supposed to, I will be back in four days."

She didn’t like that, but his plan was rational and, if he doesn’t come back, she wasn’t left with nothing. A chill passed through her back at the thought of him not coming back. She sighed too and nodded before asking him:

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow morning. I’m still a bit worried about your wound."

Kara thought she was a reasonable person in life, but, for whatever reason, she was afraid to be left alone. It wasn’t like her to fear childish things like that. Then she realizes that Athnaris was the only person who cared for her and protected her since she was in Skyrim. She felt so safe around him, even knowing he was a mercenary, and she didn’t really know why. But she didn’t want him to leave. Of that, she was sure. She nodded again and said:

"Well, now, we have a day to spend. I don’t know a lot about your world. Can you maybe teach me some traditions or manners I’m supposed to have in Skyrim? I don’t want to get in a fight because of this while you are gone."

A slight smile appeared on his face at this thought. She asked herself if he can really smile or not as he answered:

"Yeah, that could be a good idea. I wouldn’t like to see you more wounded that you are already when I come back. So, where to begin… Hum, Nords are really proud and their honour means everything to them."

The day passed like this. Athnaris taught her everything he knew about Skyrim and its inhabitants. This land was not that different from Scandinavian ones from Earth. Honour, battles and spirituality. It looked a lot like the medieval values of northern Europe and she already knew some of them. It was kind of comforting. When the evening came, Athnaris wished her good night and left her to go to his room. The young woman felt more confident for the new life she will begin to live the next morning. And it will be for a short amount of time! She liked to think of this approximately three weeks in a medieval world like a live-action role-play game. It was easier to think about it like a game than real life. Comforted by her new learning and the fact that she could go home, Kara fell asleep easily.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The second of the three! The third one may took me more time than i originally thought. It will surely be post tomorrow.
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

Athnaris had difficulties to fell asleep and his night was short. He awakens at sunrise with a sense of urgency, like something was waiting for him. Again, something inside his chest was burning, pushing him to go, to find a dragon and to bring it down. He never felt such a rage since the death of Ashera. He put a hand on his chest, trying to calm down. As he did not have enough with Kara from another world and the dragon, his own body and magic had to turn against him. And the dreams… He really didn’t want to think about them. Getting up, he started getting dressed and preparing his equipment for the day of travel. At least, with the Imperial armour, he will not be interrogated that much. Now fully dressed and ready, he left his room to go to Kara’s room.

Peeking inside, he made sure that she was asleep before entering. She looked so peaceful and young when she was sleeping… At least one of them was able to sleep without being assaulted by nightmares. He only had eighty gold pieces left in his purse, so he took the entire purse and put it on the table next to Kara. He didn’t really need gold in the wilderness, he was capable of surviving by himself. He hoped that it will be enough for her. He forgot to ask her who she was in her other life and if she was a noble, she may be used to more luxury than this. She would have to deal with this amount. Not looking back, Athnaris left her room and came out of the inn.

The sky was painted of pastel shades of yellow, pink, crimson, purple and outlined by a darker blue. The tenebrous silhouette of Bleak Falls Barrow carved itself against the pale but colourful sky and thus offered a magnificent landscape. If he could, he would have stayed here to enjoy the sunrise, but the dragon was more important. The old legends announced their returns as the end of the world, so he cannot take this event lightly. Athnaris walk down the stairs of the Sleeping Giant inn and took the road toward Whiterun.

Long hours of walking passed without anything but the song of birds and rabbits fleeing his presence. Focusing on the road, the half-elf didn’t really think about something in particular even if the image of the black dragon appeared sometimes in his thoughts. It was a peaceful setting but the sun was almost in the middle of the sky and the mercenary began to feel hungry. It was time to hunt.

Athnaris get off the road and started walking slowly, making as little noise as possible and looking where he was laying his feet. He knew that deers were abundant in these woods, he will not have to wait long.

A few moments later, a gracious doe appears in his sight. It was the perfect opportunity. Summoning fire in his hands, he blasted it with a long firebolt. The doe fell dead, burnt to death. At least the meat will already be cooked. The mercenary slowly approached his prey, pulling out his sword to skin it. He had to be quick. The cooked meat smell was strong and it will surely attract all the predators in the area. When he had taken all of the meat he could carry, Athnaris ran his way out of the woods to go back on the road. It was good to be back on this old way of living. Less complicated. He continued his walk while eating a little part of deer meat.

The half-elf walked until sunset. All this time allowed him to think about the last few days. Athnaris, before Helgen, was depressed and almost happy to die. Then, the big black dragon and Kara entered his life. It changed everything. He didn’t know why but it felt right to protect Kara and the dragon seemed destined to be his new nemesis. It gave him something to fight and someone to fight for. With irony, he thought that he was really a simple man to need only these two things to regain a taste for life. But he was kind of thankful for it. Silently, he prayed his thanks to Akatosh and Mara, two gods who surely play a role in all this. However, something was still bothering him. This need to fight a dragon absolutely, this fire in his soul who ignites from nowhere, this pride and this new desire for power. He never felt it before Helgen. It was a part of him he didn’t know that just came to life because of the dragon, but he wanted to know why. Maybe the court magician of Whiterun will know more about all this. He hoped so...

The sunset was almost fully set. He wasn’t far from his destination now and he could see the plains and the city on the horizon. Only half a day to go. Athnaris decided it was time to set up the camp for the night. The fire camp was quickly done and lighten up. The mercenary sits around his fire, eating a piece of meat from midday hunt. Something was telling him he wouldn’t sleep a lot tonight. He didn’t have time to buy a bedroll and he could not take the risk of removing his armour. At least, he will still be a little protected by it in his sleep. Resigning to sleep on the ground, he lay on his side and rolled himself into a ball to keep the heat. He fell asleep after some time, rocked by the howling wolves.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me so long to post. Summer has passed too fast and i made big changes in my life. But now that it's finally stable, i can write again! I will try to post each week like in Spring.
> 
>  
> 
> \- Kara POV -

The next morning, Kara had wake up late in the morning. She sat on her bed, remembering what happened yesterday. The last day was particular… She had wake up alone with a bag of gold on the side of her bed. That’s it. No message, no goodbyes, nothing. Maybe he really wanted to get rid of her as soon as he can? The simple thought of it infuriated her, even if she knows that he had all the rights in the world to do it. After all, she really was a dead weight in this world. She didn’t get out of the inn all day after this, only getting up of her bed to eat and to pay her room for another night. But today, she intended to do go out and change her ideas. After all, if he wasn’t coming back, she had to find herself a job and get over this strange looking man. Plus, she didn’t even know him! Why was she so affected by this? Maybe it was some kind of gratefulness toward her ‘’saviour’’? Anyway, she was sure it will soon pass.

  
Getting out of her bed, the young woman took her bag of gold with her and quickly quit the inn. If she wanted to find a job, the first step was to get an interview somewhere and, for that, she needed better clothes than the rags she was currently wearing and a good bath. Wandering through the town, Kara quickly found what seems to be the general shop. In fact, it seemed to be the only real shop of the town if you exclude the blacksmith and the inn. When she entered, the merchant was talking to a young dark-haired woman who seemed to be his sister. The woman began:

  
"One of us has to do something!"

  
Seeming angry at her and tired, the merchant answered:

  
"I said no! No adventures, no theatrics, no thief chasing."

  
"Well, what are you going to do then, huh? Let’s hear it!"

  
"We are done talking about this!''

  
Then, the salesman seemed to acknowledge her presence and said:

  
"Oh! A customer! Sorry you had to hear that."

  
The dark-haired woman, clearly angry at him, walked to another room as the man takes his place at the counter. She bought the simplest dress she could find, she didn’t have money to waste on beautiful clothes. She thanked the merchant and tried to avoid any discussion about this theft that happens in the store. Like she could do a quest for someone… Kara left the shop with her new dress, heading to the river. She figured that, in that Hell of a place, she wouldn’t find a hot bath if she wasn’t willing to pay good gold for it. The river was clear, near and free. She walked on the river’s shores searching for a somewhat intimate place to bath. Not far the end of the town, she found a kind of intimate place and undressed to enter the cold but clear water. As she was washing herself, she takes time to admire the forest around her. The air was fresh and pure, like the water, and the forest seemed undisturbed by the men’s industries. She could see doe and elk walking beside the river like they were not afraid of her. It was magic. After a while, she felt that strange feeling of someone watching her. She turned around to go back on the shores and she sees a short strange looking man watching her, her clothes in his hands. He said:

  
"Sorry to interrupt, I was wondering why clothes were lying on the shores."

  
He turned around to give her some privacy, letting go of her clothes. Flushed, Kara quickly ran to her dress, dressing as fast as she can. The man who found her looked a bit like Athnaris with his sharp features and his pointed ears, but he was really slender with a skin the colour of the inside of a chestnut, white hair and really dark feline eyes. Finished, she said shyly:

  
"You can turn around."

  
As he obeyed, the man smiled shyly too and said:

  
"I’m really sorry; I didn’t mean to break the privacy of your bath. I’m Faendal, but people around here call me sometimes the wood elf hunter."

  
"Well, hello Faendal, my name is Kara."

  
"Well met, Kara. Is there something I can do to apologies?"

  
At least, Faendal was really sweet and friendly. He was an elf. A real one. He must be old and know a lot of things about Riverwood and maybe places to work. And if he doesn’t, it was worth trying. Kara didn’t have a lot of money left.

  
"In fact, I’m new to this town and I was wondering where I can find a job. Do you know people who need new employees?''

  
The wood elf made a pensive face for a second and responded to her:

  
"Hum… You could always try to work as a waitress at the Sleeping Giant Inn and I know that Gerdur, the woman who own the sawmill, is always looking for people to cut some firewood or to activate the big automatic saw."

  
Two possibilities! It was great! Kara wasn’t really fond of cutting wood but she could always try. It could be good to train a bit before the big travel she had to do to this Winterhold. The waitress job could be interesting too, aside from the drunken men with bad manners. She smiled and said:

  
"Thank you very much, Faendal! I will try these places!"

  
She began to walk, waving goodbye at the hunter. She could build a life here, a real one if she wanted. It was kind of comforting if she couldn’t go home, if her first plans failed. Thankfully it wouldn’t, thankfully Athnaris will come back and bring her to Winterhold. At least, she hoped. With that not so comforting thought, she walked toward the big sawmill, hoping to get the job.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a little more than a week, but i'm trying to keep the pace. Enjoy!
> 
>  
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

The last day had been busy, Athnaris had walked all the way to the city of Whiterun. He didn’t like cities generally, but, of all cities he has been to, this was the first that made him feel like he could settle down in it. Something in the way Whiterun was built mixed with its position in the plains of Skyrim made him feel safe and peaceful, it was two feelings he had rarely felt in his brief life. He had walked to the big gates who marked the entry of Whiterun and the guards had intercepted him with a spark of fear in their eyes. 

They said that the city was closed because of the dragon. They had heard rumours of it and upgraded the security. But something in the way they were talking to him felt like they were afraid of him. Him, a half-elf mercenary. Even with the fact that his elf part was altmer, usually guards talked to him with indifference or disdain. Never with fear. The new part of himself liked it, bragging that they were right to be afraid. Troubled by this fear, he explained to them that he was there because he had information about the dragon, that he had been at Helgen.

 They had let him pass, looking at him with what seemed like respect. Athnaris didn’t really know what to think about that and was tired from the trip he had just done. He went to The Bannered Mare, the cozy inn of the Plains District of the city, to rest for the night. The mercenary had trouble to sleep, again, but managed to get at least an hour of real sleep.

When he wakes up in the morning, he felt a slight change in his magic. Something was still growing in him. It had begun with the pride and this power-hungry side of himself, then this change. Athnaris was worried, but he didn’t have time to deal with that right now. He quickly got dressed and hastily get out of the inn. He had to go to Dragonsreach as fast as possible if he wanted to confirm the rumours to the jarl before the dragon himself confirm its presence. 

Climbing the stone stairs, he reviewed in his head what he could say to the jarl and his court. If he remembered rightly, the jarl was Balgruuf the Greater, an honourable Nord who was willing to do anything for his subjects. He hoped that this loyalty will ease the dialogue. On the little bridge of Dragonsreach, Athnaris taken a moment to admire the huge keep built in Nord style. The castle inspired respect and fascination. He had finally taken away his eyes from the building and crossed the bridge, he entered through massive wooden doors. The interior was warm and impressive, but he didn’t have time to look because an armoured Dunmer woman was walking toward him, her sword drawn out and serious look on her face. Her stern voice echoes a bit as she said:

‘’What’s the meaning of this interruption? Jarl Balgruuf is not receiving visitors.’’

Straightening himself, Athnaris answered:

‘’I have news from Helgen. Regarding the dragon attack.’’

‘’Well, that explains why the guards let you in. Come on then, the Jarl will want to speak to you personally.’’

She sheathes her sword but kept a warning look in her eyes as she turned around to guide him to the throne. A tall Nord with long blond hair and blue eyes, wearing a gold and rubies circlet, was sitting on it. At his sides, a rich-looking balding Imperial and a tall warrior Nord were standing. He said, calmly, like knowing the reason of his presence: 

‘’So. You were at Helgen? You saw this dragon with your own eyes?’’

Avoiding at all costs to talk about his capture, the mercenary nodded and said:

‘’The dragon unleashed Oblivion in the city with one cry. It destroyed it and then headed in the direction of Whiterun.’’

The Jarl turned toward the Imperial and said:

‘’What do you say now, Proventus? Shall we continue to trust in the strength of our walls? Against a dragon?’’

Oh well, it seemed to be a sensitive subject. The half-elf didn’t expect to see a quarrel between a Jarl and his court so soon...The Dunmer woman interferes:

‘’My lord, we should send troops to Riverwood at once. It's in the most immediate danger, if that dragon is lurking in the mountains...’’

Proventus, the Imperial, interrupted her:

‘’The Jarl of Falkreath will see that as a provocation! He’ll assume we’re preparing to join Ulfric’s side and attack him. We should...’’

Jarl Balgruuf raised his voice and said:

‘’Enough! I’ll not stand idly by while a dragon burns my hold and slaughters my people!’’

There was the Jarl the mercenary had heard so much about! Loyalty and dedication!Turning his gaze toward the Dunmer, Balgruuf ordered:

‘’Irileth, send a detachment to Riverwood at once.’’

The Dunmer nodded and answered simply:

‘’Yes, my Jarl.’’

If this Irileth was the woman who protected this hold while serving a great Jarl like Balgruuf, Athnaris was relieved a bit for the citizens of Whiterun. Proventus apologized, going back to whatever duties he had to do:

‘’If you’ll excuse me, I’ll return to my duties.’’

The Jarl looked at him with a spark of anger and said:

‘’That would be best.’’

Then, his gaze turned to Athnaris and said with a warmer tone:

‘’Well done. You sought me out, on your own initiative. You’ve done Whiterun a service and I won’t forget it. Here, take this as a small token of my esteem.’’

A guard brought a leather armour, better than the one Athnaris was wearing, and a small bag of gold to give to him. Without letting the half-elf to even say a word, he adds:

‘’There is another thing you could do for me. Suitable for your particular talents, perhaps. Come, let’s go find Farengar, my court wizard. He’s been looking into a matter related to these dragons and… Rumours of dragons.’’

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really thankful for all your reviews and your commentaries! You all are the best!
> 
>  
> 
> \- Kara POV -

Two days have passed since she went to Gerdur to find a job. Kara felt febrile for it was the day Athnaris was supposed to come back. It was already midday and he wasn’t there yet. The young woman, actioning the big saw of the sawmill, was watching anxiously the little bridge of Riverwood since the morning and saw no sign of him. While she was working, she kept worrying about it. And if he wasn’t coming back? Maybe something happen to him on the way? Maybe he got busy with something more important? Or maybe he really had abandoned her? She didn’t want to really think about the last option. She didn’t want to believe he had betrayed her like that. Why was she even thinking about that? He didn’t owe her anything, he couldn’t betray her. Still, the red headed woman felt a spark of desperation rushing into her at this thought.On the bright side, she had found a good job. It was easy and she was paid after each day. Gerdur was a friendly and generous boss and her coworkers were all mature and thoughtful males. If she was stuck in Skyrim, at least she was in the best place to be. Someone called her, pulling her out of her thoughts. It was Faendal who was calling her for the lunch break.

The wood elf - as she has learned there were different kinds of elves - and her talked a lot in the last two days. It was the first friend she made since she arrived on Nirn and it felt natural to talk to him. He was calm and comprehensive, answering her questions on the village and on the elven kinds. She had learned that the wood elves, or bosmer, were like reverse vegans. They were using and eating only animal products to never hurt the forest and were living generally peacefully with everyone else. The dark elves, or dunmer, were literally black or gray with, more commonly, red eyes. They were the masters of secrets and the most effective killers if they wanted to. Finally, the high elves, or altmer, were really tall and have a golden skin. They were habitually haughty, patronizing, in conflict with most races and were the most powerful wizards. Yep, because magic was real. Like the dragon or the elves, she never thought this kind of thing could exist, but there it was. It was exciting new!

She went down the platform and greeted Faendal with a forced smile. The hunter looked at her with a worried face and asked:

“Something’s wrong? You seem anxious.”

Walking besides him, she played with a red curl of her hair nervously and answered:

“Yeah… It’s nothing, I’m just on the edges today.”

With a slight smile of amusement, Faendal insisted:

“It could be nothing, but I really want to know why. I begin to know you, Kara, and you’re clearly hiding something.”

Kara let out a sigh and surrendered:

“Okay, okay… I will tell you. You know the man who brings me here while I was hurt? He had to go to Whiterun to talk to the Jarl and was supposed to come back in four days. After that, he was supposed to bring me home. But today is the fourth day and he’s not here.”

Frowning, the bosmer asked:

“You are talking about the really tall half-altmer in armour? I’m already surprised that he decided to save your life in the first place. His kind isn’t known for its kindness. But if he promised, I’m sure he will come back. Don’t worry about it. It easy for travellers to be delayed in Skyrim.”

Kara never thought about it. It was true that Athnaris was tall and that his skin had a slight golden hue, but she never made the link. So he was half altmer… But he didn’t look haughty or patronizing. Maybe a bit cold and strict at times, but he genuinely seemed to care. If he ever came back, she had to ask him about all this. She knew that in her world, stereotypes were generally false, it couldn’t be so different in this new world. She nodded and said:

“Yes, that’s him. I’m sure you’re right but it’s difficult not to worry.”

Looking at her strangely, Faendal said:

“You like him a bit, don’t you?”

Making instantly a facial expression showing how much she thought the idea was ridiculous, she answered:

“No, not at all. Yes, he’s handsome but the real reason why I care is that he’s my only way home.”

Smiling with a small doubt on his face, Faendal said:

“Perfect, cause I’m not sure it is a good idea to fall in love with someone just because he saved you and that he’s good-looking.”

Smiling too, she answered:

“Don’t worry, Faendal, I’m far from that.”

Or at least, she hoped. She really hoped to only be thankful and not something else. It would be such an inconvenience, because she really wanted to go back to her world and love would be an obstacle in her path.

At the end of the day, Kara waited hours and hours in the hall of the inn for the mercenary. Athnaris didn’t come back this night. The young woman finally decided to go to bed. Lying here, all alone, she looked up to the ceiling and cried. The little hope she had to go home was fading each second that passed while she was crying until she was left with nothing. She will never see her brother again, or her parents. There was so much things she left behind on Earth, so many friends, so much passion she had to mourn now. She wasn’t ready for Nirn, for Skyrim, but she couldn’t do anything about it. Kara tried to stop crying but the tears came out again and again. When she had no tears to cry and no more things of her old life to mourn, the exhausted young woman fell asleep and didn’t dream at all.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, I'm a bit late from my usual Tuesday/Friday update. I've been distracted a lot this week.  
> Hope you will enjoy my take on the soul absorbing thing!
> 
>  
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

Athnaris was a bit annoyed. He had lost four days to retrieve this damned stone map! But there he was, entering Whiterun again, with the supposed map of dragons’ tombs and hoping to get a really good reward for this piece of stone. Bleak Falls Barrow was a really dangerous place, especially if you were looking for an old relic in the last chamber of it, which happened to be the last rest of a lord draugr who can shoot dragons’ words at you. The only thing that was really interesting in this Oblivion of a place has been the Word Wall. Curiously, it had seemed to resonate with something in him when he had approached it. A word in particular glowed weakly on the big stone wall and suddenly, Athnaris has understood what it means. Fus; Force. He had felt something in his mind unlocking, like some old memories coming back to him, but he didn’t what exactly. He got out of his thought when he saw the doors of Dragonsreach. Hopefully, Farengar would reward him with more than snarky comments for this damned mission. When the half-altmer stepped inside the laboratory of Farengar, the mage was conversing with a short hooded female with a warm voice. Her face was almost all covered, only showing her ice blue hooded eyes. Looking at her with a frown and a suspicious glance, he approached Farengar and pulled out the stone tablet. The court wizard exclaimed:

  
“Ah! The Dragonstone of Bleak Falls Barrow! Seems you are a cut above the usual brutes the Jarl sends my way.”

  
Rolling his eyes at the comment while Farengar was studying the Dragonstone closely, he said:

  
“It wasn’t easy as you made it sound, I hope I will get a little compensation.”

  
Before the wizard could answer him, Irileth entered the room calling for Farengar. Athnaris almost let out a sigh at what she was saying. A dragon has been seen at a watchtower nearby. Nice… More legendary beasts who were announcing the end of times… He followed Farengar and Irileth to the Jarl’s emergency meeting. After a discussion with a frightened guard and an exchanging of orders with Irileth, Balgruuf turned toward him and said:

  
“There’s no time to stand on ceremony, my friend. I need your help again. I need you to go with Irileth and help her fight this dragon. You survived Helgen, so you have more experience with dragons than anyone else here. But I haven’t forgotten the service you did for me in retrieving the Dragonstone for Farengar. You will be rewarded for it and for the dragon.”

  
His blood had sung at the thought of fighting the dragon. So much for being not suicidal… If he was getting a reward at the end, at least he had a real reason to do it. He nodded his agreement to the request. The dunmer taking the lead, Athnaris headed toward surely the most dangerous fight he had ever gotten in.

The watchtower looked almost desert. The only marks of the dragon’s passage was smoking debris from the tower itself and a few mounds of inflamed grass. No sign of the dragon itself. Irileth, Athnaris and the couple of guards who were escorting them approached the entry of the building. An injured Whiterun guard suddenly came out of the door and shouted:

“No! Get back! It’s still here somewhere! Hroki and Tor just got grabbed when they tried to make a run for it!”

  
Almost like it was summoned by this sentence, the dragon roared, appearing in the sky. It was a smaller greyish dragon, not as imposing as the big black dragon he had encountered at Helgen. Arming himself with his sword and a spark spell, Athnaris felt ready to fight, eager to finally face one of his kind. Did he really think “his kind”? No time to put more thought on that right now…  
After a circling of the tower, the beast posed itself in front of him, its pale yellow eyes gleaming with a cold and reptilian desire to kill. Blasting it with his sparks, the mercenary charged it, aiming for where he thought the heart was. Fire versus lightning, claws and fangs versus sword. Athnaris and the dragon exchanged hit for hit. The blood of the beast was darker and hot like liquid fire on his skin each time he was capable of piercing the scales. The arrows and the swords of his escort helped him a bit, but the half-altmer felt it was mainly between him and the dragon. After much more burns and wound on him, the dragon finally seemed weak, tired. Taking advantage of this moment, Athnaris jumped on the neck of the dragon. He approached between the horns of the beast to jab his blade in the skull of the creature. The last blow. The dragon died, shouting:

  
“Dovahkiin, no!”

  
Jumping off the corpse of his rival, a wicked smile drew itself on the lips of the mercenary. He was stronger. The bloodthirsty side of him was singing his victory in the language of his soul. Suddenly, he was deaf, surrounded by golden magic filaments. Mirmulnir. The dragon’s name was Mirmulnir. Athnaris knew, at this moment, what he was. A dragon in the body of a mortal. When the soul of Mirmulnir finally merged with his, he looked around him with astonishment. The guards were whispering “Dragonborn”. That’s what he was… That explained a lot… It was the reason he was reacting so strongly to other dragons, his new pride, his new magic, his inherent knowing of the dragons’ language when he read a Word Wall and now he knew he could use the Voice too…

  
Speechless, he began his walk toward Whiterun. With all this, he had almost forgotten why he came here in the first place. He was only supposed to warn the Jarl and then come back to… By Mara! He had forgotten Kara! It has been, what, already four days since the date he was supposed to come back. The poor woman was surely desperate for not been able to go back home. How could he forget something that important?! The half-altmer hoped she will not be too angry at him. Even after killing a bloody dragon, he still feared a woman’s wrath. Ironic.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with a reunion of the pair! Maybe not what Athnaris was expecting…
> 
>  
> 
> \- Kara POV -

It has been almost a week -six days to be precise- that Athnaris was supposed to come back, but now, Kara couldn’t care less. Or at least that was what she was trying to convince herself of. Her first plan had failed but she had made up a new plan. She couldn’t just sit back and cry on her fate for the rest of her life. Athnaris talked about this place called Winterhold. She made her researches and learned that it was a town known for its college of wizards to almost a week of travel from Riverwood. It was common knowledge that this city weather was really cold, even in summer. It was also said that the college was built in a beautiful architecture. Only her would be the judge of that... If Athnaris couldn’t take her there, she had to go by herself and plan the travel in consequence.

Training was necessary and who could train her to survive better than Faendal? After each day of work, the pair trained in archery and running for two hours. After five days of that workout, she felt sore but knew she was already better at both disciplines. At night, she was studying the map of Skyrim she bought at Lucan’s shop at least an hour to remember each path. The map wasn’t really precise but she had to do with what she had at hand. Maybe a month of all this and she would be able to buy some armour and a bow. She should maybe buy silex and a bedroll too. It was necessary if she wanted to go safely to Winterhold and maybe home.

Kara was training when Camilla, Lucan’s sister, came running to her and Faendal. Kara and Camilla had bound quickly in the last days, being the only single young women of Riverwood. Furthermore, the two women shared a passion for drawing and that had welds their friendship. The dark haired woman said with a suggestive smile:

“Oh Kara! Your saviour is back in town! You never said he was so pretty! He asked to see you by the way.”

With an annoyed look, the red-haired woman shrugged and said:

“Hmpf. I don’t need him anymore and his beauty doesn't matter. Can you say to him that I just don’t want to see him, I’ve the matter in hand.”

With an amused smile, Camilla answered:

“Oh, okay! Then, you won’t mind that I try to charm this beautiful half-elf. Later, Kara!”

She ran back to where she came from under the pained glance of Faendal. Spotting it, Kara said:

“You should ask her out, you know. It’s obvious that you love her and she won’t be single forever.”

Before Faendal could answer, the big form of Athnaris appeared, calling for her. She had forgotten how much he was tall and good-looking. Now that she knew elvish facial traits, she could definitely see that he was a half-elf. With a sigh, she goes toward him and said:

“What do you want?”

The half-elf looked surprised by her attitude and answered:

“Firstly, to apologies. I’ve been delayed and I should have come sooner. Secondly, now that I’m here, I can bring you to Winterhold.”

Kara fixed her emerald glance in his, as blue as the sky, for a second and then said:

“Apology accepted and no, thank you. I can go by myself.”

Frowning, Athnaris said with disbelief:

“What? Eh, you know that it will be safer if I go with you?”

Turning around to resume her training, she said:

“Yes, I know. But I don’t want to owe anything else to you.”

He followed her and said:

“But I want to help you! I have gold, armours, weapons and camping materials. I’m experienced too! I’m your best chance to go back home!”

Raising an eyebrow, she replied:

“Maybe, but I don’t trust you.”

After a second of silence, he turned around, returning where he came from. Faendal made a pitiful face and commented:

“You were harsh on him. He just wanted to help and he was right. You could go to Winterhold tomorrow with him. Faster and safer.”

Taking her bow, she said with anger:

“You may be right, but I don’t want to hear it for now. Can we resume our training?”

The wood elf nodded with a sigh.

After the workout, Kara thought about it. It’s true that she would have everything she could want for the trip right now, not in a month. She could be only one week from home. She only has to swallow her pride for a moment. That couldn’t be that hard… But, in fact, she still resent him for not keeping his promises the first time. And if he abandoned her while travelling? It was really hard actually… Damn it! She had nothing to lose in reality. Taking a long breath, she made her way to the Sleeping Giant Inn, sure to find him there. When Kara entered the inn, Athnaris was sitting at the bar, sipping at a honey wine bottle, with a brooding face. She went up straight to the bar, sitting beside him and said:

“I don’t trust you, but I’m not a fool either. You are right, you are my best chance to go home.”

With a half-smile, he asked:

“So, you are considering my proposition?”

She sighed and answered:

“If it still stands, I’m taking it. I really want to go to Winterhold, even if it doesn’t work at the end.”

Taking a last sip at his bottle, he said:

“Perfect, we leave tomorrow morning. Be ready."

The half-elf stood up and left the bar to go to his room. The young woman watched him leave with disbelief. It has been so simple. Tomorrow, she was leaving to get home, finally. Excited, she ran out of the inn to announce it to Gerdur, Faendal and Camilla. Everything had to be cleared before she goes because, if the wizards could help her, she wasn’t coming back.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm bit late for this update, but there it is! More complicated feelings!
> 
>  
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

It had been already a day and a half since they quit from Riverwood and the half-elf was still shocked. He couldn’t figure out what happened to the helpless woman he left at Riverwood more than a week ago.She hadn’t talked to him more than necessary, wore the armour he gave to her even at night, always has her bow ready and never complain. Back then, he didn’t believe she had that kind of strength in her. She was hurt, lost and delicate, a noble, perhaps a scholar. Not that taciturn woman, who could use her bow rather decently. However, she had some quirks that led him to believe part of this was a role she was playing to feel stronger. The way she was observing everything with a spark of fear in the eyes, the wince she was doing when she took off her boots and the sound her stomach had made with only two meals in the day. Kara was trying to prove him that she was strong enough, even when she was suffering. He didn’t know what it made him feel exactly, but he didn’t like the feeling.

The hours he had spent looking at her discreetly while leaving the forest for adventuring themselves in the plains of Skyrim were enough. This silence was making him mad. Pushing back a strand of his dark brown hair from his face, he asked Kara:

“So, what were you in your world?”

Raising an eyebrow with an incredulous face, Kara answered:

“Why would you want to know that now?”

With a grin, he said:

“You know, it’s not every day that a man can escort a woman from a completely another world.”

Sighing resignedly, she said:

“Well, I was an architect. I was successful, I had a grand apartment, a decent car and lots of excellent friends. I have a little brother called Alek, and my parents were proud of me. It isn’t that exciting.”

That eluded the mystery of whom was this Alek she called in her sleep… But a “car”? He asked with a perplexed frown:

“What is a “car”?”

Seeming taken aback by the peculiar question, she nervously tried to explain while playing with a curl of her hair:

“It is a metal cart that moves without horses thanks to a fuel engine. It's going very fast. At the point where our one-week walk would have taken us nine hours by car.”

It’s seemed familiar. The concept looked fairly close to the Dwemer machines. Tilting his head slightly to one side, Athnaris frowned more and tried to make a parallel:

“Is it like the steam engines used by the Dwemer?”

With a satisfied expression, probably because he understood the principle, she answered:

“Yeah! It’s the same concept! Enough talking about me. Where do you come from? Do you have a family?”

The half-altmer slightly smile, even if Ashera haunted his thoughts and said:

“Oh, like your friends at Riverwood probably told you, I’m a half altmer, half breton. I mostly took from the altmer side, sadly. My mother is a Breton, she’s running an inn in High Rock. I don’t know much about my father apart from the fact that he was an Altmer and that he left my mom when I was really young…Not the best childhood, especially that all my siblings were pure blood Breton…”

A compassionate look appeared on the face of Kara.It made him feel listened, cared for and it was easy to confide himself to her, even if the dragon inside him rebelled itself against the idea. She asked:

“How many siblings do you have?”

His smile disappeared, turning into a grieved expression. He answered gloomily:

“I have… I had five siblings…”

She said right away with a remorseful glance:

“Oh, I’m really sorry, I... I didn’t want to stir up painful memories.”

Her reaction erased the traces of sadness on his face. She was so kind, so thoughtful and sensitive.Even when she tried to play the hard act, she couldn’t fight against her nature. He had never encountered someone who cared that much about the feelings of a almost stranger. It was refreshing. His dragon in the back of his mind, treated him of weak, but he didn’t care. He was entranced by the way her lovely eyes shone with emotions. Athnaris had to collect his thoughts a moment to come back in the conversation and said:

“It’s okay. You could not know. Anyway… In your world, do you have elves?”

With a timid smile, she answered:

“Only in legends and stories, mostly fiction, that’s why I was a bit weirded out by your facial features. I had never seen a real elf before you and Faendal.”

The dragon inside him growled possessively. She had passed too much time with the white-haired wood elf. It didn’t appreciate that. Reacting on instinct, he raised an eyebrow and asked:

“Faendal is the wood elf you trained with, right? Are you really close to him?”

With airiness, she replied:

“Oh, Faendal and I are close, yes. He’s my first friend on Nirn. We spent most of our days together.”

Oh, another growl of anger from Dragon Soul… She didn’t even seem to realize it could be more than that friend thing. Trying to calm down the odd peak of jealousy he felt, Athnaris tried to talk with neutrality in his tone:

“I see…It's sad that you were friends for barely a week.”

Why did he feel like that?! Why did he think it should have been with him that Kara should have spent her days? She wasn’t his, even if Dragon Soul wasn’t okay with that!It’s clear his feelings about her were confused. He was attracted to her, his dragon liked her and hated her at the same time, and it wasn’t clear what he was exactly feeling for her. By Akatosh, she was going back to her world really soon, and he was already dealing with ambivalent feeling… In what complex story the mercenary was into, now? He had to be careful.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry I didn't update last week. I had a big writer's block and it took me a week to overcome it. Hope you will enjoy this new chapter!
> 
>  Also, I'm trying to do the portraits of our two heroes with watercolor. I'm probably gonna finish it for the next update.
> 
> Update for the painting! You can go see them!  
> Kara: https://beaudointhalie.wixsite.com/portefolio/dessins?lightbox=dataItem-k25jyqb0  
> Athnaris: https://beaudointhalie.wixsite.com/portefolio/dessins?lightbox=dataItem-k25td7z0
> 
> \- Kara POV -

Kara never thought her feet could hurt that much. Athnaris bandaged them last night to prevent any more blisters to form. It had been two days since the bizarre tension between her and her travel companion eased. She was thankful for it, as she was going slowly hysterical from the lack of conversations before that moment. Even if she enjoyed talking to the half-elf, something about him made her feel an odd mix of respect and fear. Much like the instinctive fascination and terror she had felt when she first saw the dragon, but a lot more subtle. Sometimes, when she was saying something that he didn’t like, a deep guttural growl came from him without him noticing. That’s how she knew he was irritated by her relationship with Faendal, for some reasons, and that he didn’t like cities. She will have to investigate it before her departure. Aside from these unusual things, Athnaris was indubitably a decent guy. He hid behind the mercenary attitude to prevent people to see he wanted to help more than he desired money. At least, that was her theory from what she could analyse from their dialogues. While she was thinking, she didn’t really realise they exited the forest to walk on a rocky path between mountains. Athnaris extracted her from her thoughts, saying:

“The mountains… We are a little more than half-way to Winterhold. This region is dangerous, you should stay close to me.”

Looking around her briefly, she obeyed and asked:

“What kind of things lurks around here?”

A hand on the hilt of his sword, he answered:

“Bandits, trolls, wolves and frostbite spiders, even if these are more present between the months Heartfire and Sun’s Dusk.”

Shivering at the thought of the creatures, she asked:

“Eh, which month are we in, right now?”

Thinking a second to recall the date, he said:

“Hum… We were the last day of Last Seed yesterday, so it’s the first day of Heartfire actually.”

She tried applying a correspondence between the two calendars with a frown and then said:

“Athnaris… I don’t know the calendar of this world, how does it work?”

Like he had remembered she wasn’t from Skyrim, he said with a dazed face:

“It’s a calendar with twelve months that last between 30 and 31 days, with an exception for Sun’s Dawn that last 28 days. Three months for each season, Heartfire being the first month of autumn.”

That was good news! The calendar from this world was extremely similar from the Gregorian one, almost the same in fact! So they were in September right now, interesting to know. She said with a slight smile:

“Thank you! I’m relieved! The calendar of my world is almost the same, I just have to find which month is which! On Earth, Heartfire is September and Sun’s Dawn is most likely February, with only 28 days.”

Smiling too, the mercenary seemed amuses by the coincidence and asked:

“Then, could you tell me what is the name of my birth month on Earth? It’s the first month of summer.”

Her smile getting broader, happy that he was genuinely interested, she answered:

“You were born in June. What is the name of June here? And could you tell me mine? My anniversary is in the last month of autumn, it’s called November on Earth.”

Athnaris articulated the word “June” one time, like he was trying it. She found this new look on his face rather adorable to look at. He said:

“June is called Midyear on Nirn. Yours is Sun’s Dusk.”

Sun’s Dusk, peculiar name! She liked it. But, it had made her think that Sun’s Dusk wasn’t that far away in time. She was turning 25 years old in only three months. The thought provoked a mysterious feeling in her chest and at the end of her fingers. The smile of Kara disappeared. Her eyes were looking at the path without really seeing, her face full of worries and her hand rubbing the end of the fingers of the other hand. He got her out of mind again, asking:

“Are you okay, Kara? Is something wrong?”

Absentmindedly, the young woman answered:

“I have a strange feeling, like something was under the skin of my fingers...”

She didn’t tell about the fluttering feeling in her chest. Or about the harsh way something was travelling in her blood right to the end of her fingers, trying to get out. She was distracted from her thought by Athnaris who impulsively took her gentle hand and looked at it with a perplexed frown. He pointed out a triangle mark, like tattooed, in her graceful palm.

“That’s new! Where did that come from?”

She had never seen it before and was even more surprised than him. How could a mark that precise and dark appear like that? To add to that, the uncomfortable feeling in her fingers still lingered. Kara didn’t appreciate what was happening at all. Looking at the mercenary, she said with a hint of panic:

“I don’t fucking know! I thought about my age and my birth month and then, it appeared. Do you know what could it mean?”

With a hesitant expression, he answered:

“Hum… The only Aedra or Daedra, who have a triangle for the symbol, is Julianos… He’s the god of magic, logic and wisdom. But, I don’t know what could be the link with Sun’s Dusk… Maybe astrology? The birth sign of people tends to play a role in their capacities on Nirn.”

With an anxious glance, she asked:

“What is the birth sign of Sun’s Dusk and what does it mean to me?”

His puzzled face suddenly enlightened as he said:

“Your sign is the Atronach. People born under this sign are generally innate sorcerers… With the mark of Julianos... You could be a Chosen of Julianos! And that weird feeling, it’s your magic awakening! I think Nirn accepted you as part of herself. The gods now see you and for some obscure reason, Julianos chose you…”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again! Learning some magic, feeling and dragon soul tantrum!  
> Sorry for the late update!
> 
> \- Athnaris POV -

Athnaris wasn’t sure what to think about this. The idea of Kara being chosen by a god was weird itself, then his dragon soul roared against it. It was enraged by the fact Julianos claimed their Kara, their outlander. The half-elf himself wasn’t really happy about it, but knew better than to challenge a god before knowing what this god really wanted. To add to his own confusion, Kara was even more confused and in pain, her new magicka torturing her. It was probably because she wasn’t born with it, but he wasn’t sure. He had to teach her to use it and calm it down if he wanted her to be sane at the end of the week. At his side, Kara was crying silent tears of pain and panic, watching her palms with despair. She was so miserable, he couldn’t help but feel angry at Julianos and even Nirn. Gently, he took her little hands with his and said:

“Look at me, Kara. It will be okay. I will teach you how to use magic and it will stop hurting. Forget Julianos. You are going home soon, anyway.”

She looked at him with her green eyes shining with tears, trying to ease her breathing. Taking a deep breath, she calmed a little bit and asked with a flickering voice:

“You promise it will be okay?”

With a slight smile, he gave a small squeeze to her hands and answered:

“Yes, I promise. If you want, I can show you how to heal right now. To stop the pain.”

She nodded softly as he let go of her hands. Seeing her like that pained him more than he wanted to admit and lighted the fire of fury in his draconic soul. Trying to calm down, he concentrated on how to explain healing magic. He began to explain as they continued their journey.

“Okay, to use magic, you have to feel it and take control on it. It’s a part of you, and you are the master. It’s you that decide which form it takes in the physical world. We will begin with an exercise on that. Close your eyes and visualize your magicka. I see it as a stream of light in my veins, personally. Then, force it to calm down, to stop trying to get out.”

Taking a deep breath, Kara closed her eyes and, after a moment, she opened them with a smile on her face.

“It works! What do I do next?”

Smiling too at her success, he continued:

“Okay, now, try visualizing healing magic as a golden light that will heal you. Then, try changing your magicka to be a ball of this golden light in your hand.”

Within less than a minute, a golden globe of healing magic was floating in the marked hand of the young woman. She was really talented to do it so easily. It was unbelievable that she never had a magical training! It usually takes more time to learn a spell than that, even for him! He said to an amazed Kara:

“Wow! You really have a gift! You learn faster than many people. For me, this spell had taken a week of practice before I got it right.”

Kara was blushing under the praise. He liked seeing her like that. She looked so radiant and full of life. On her pale skin, the blushing was almost red. She then asked with shyness:

“Eh, what do I do with it now?”

Her tone was almost childish. Athnaris was flooded with memories of his sister, when they were young and learning, but it was less painful than two days ago. He answered with an amused glance:

“Oh, you dispel it. Just tell it to dissipate in the air.”

Kara takes a breath before dispelling the globe without any trouble. She was waving magic like she was breathing. It seemed so natural to her; you could easily forget she wasn’t born with it and never lived with it before. He was amazed every day by her, and he felt this will never change. The young woman commented on her first tries at magic:

“I like it. It’s weird but it feels right. Could you teach me other spells later?”

He answered quickly with a smile:

“Yes, I will be happy to teach you more.”

She seemed contented by his answer while they continued walking. He was delighted they now shared more than just travel. They weren’t far from Winterhold. He had estimate they will be there in three days. His dragon seemed infuriated at the thought. It was furious to only have three days left with Kara, even if she made it feel soft feelings. For once, he agreed with it. He began liking her a lot and wasn’t ready to say goodbye. Athnaris couldn’t tell why, but he knew her place was with him. He was the only one that could defend her, that could teach her everything she required to know. At least, that’s what he imagined when he searched why. Anyway, he couldn’t do something to delay her from going back home. It would be cruel of him. But he began a small prayer in his head to Akatosh. If he was the Dragonborn, maybe the god of time could interfere a bit in his favour? From now on, all he could do was hoping. Hoping to have more time to get to know this little woman. The same who was walking beside him with her long red hair in a braid and a glimpse of joy in her emerald eyes. Maybe Julianos, even if Athnaris wasn’t happy with his claiming of Kara, will help in this matter? Not sure the god of magic and wisdom wanted his new Chosen to get away from his grasp. Especially after having marked her as soon as she was integrated in Nirn. Maybe it was a sign that the gods observed Kara personally? After this reflexion, the half-elf felt this adventure wasn’t over yet.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They are finally at Winterhold! Fifteen chapters just to go there! I should add "Slow burn" to the tags. XD  
> Hope you still are interested, because this is only the beginning!
> 
>  
> 
> \- Kara POV -

They were finally there! Winterhold! Kara couldn’t believe her eyes when she finally sees the great College of Winterhold. It was really grandiose. Arches, circular designs, towers and a slight touch of gothic style. Magnificent. Furthermore, the practically destroyed city at the feet of the massive building was undoubtedly a foil to its beauty. She was finding it really interesting the College was intact. Then she remembered that wielders of magic lived there. They could surely have preserved their college. Kara wasn’t used to the fact she was now part of the “magic is real and you can use it” thing.

Each day since the awakening of her magicka, she surprised herself and Athnaris with her newfound talent and the way every spell came so naturally to her. She could heal herself and others. She could invoke fucking fire in her hand! Or send lightnings everywhere! For the last one, she really felt like the Emperor Palpatine in Star Wars. Which amused her greatly and confused the poor mercenary.

Everything was nice and pretty apart for the triangle tattooed in her hand. If Gods do exist here, she hopes he wouldn’t ask anything from her. Even if she liked magic and her new friends, she still wanted to go home. She now really hoped that the wizards could help her in this matter.

When they entered the town, everyone looked at Athnaris with a dark glance. The young woman finds it a bit racist. She knew his ancestors on the elvish side were bastards, but still. They walked straight toward the first arches who marked the entry of the College. Up the stairs, a tall High Elf woman was waiting for them. She was wearing monk-like robes but shorter, her hair was a light red and her eyes were a common green. As a full-breed High Elf, her skin was really golden and her traits were distinctly elvish. Athnaris looked at her with mistrust in his eyes and said, even before the High Elf could talk:

“Faralda, cut the “you must be worthy” talk. We need seeing Savos Arren and you already know I can do a fair share of damages with magic.”

He knew her? Kara hoped it wouldn’t interfere in her chances as it seem they didn’t appreciate each other. Faralda said nothing, turning to escort them with a haughty gait. She was probably irritated by Athnaris’s rudeness. The little group walked together to the court of the College were Faralda let them go, saying that Athnaris knew the way anyway. Puzzled, Kara asked:

“You came here before?”

With one of his low growl of disappreciation, he answered:

“Yeah, I tried to study magic in the conventional way for a month. It didn’t work out.”

Interesting, she was surprised that he wanted to bring her here then. Entering the hall of the principal building, they came face to face with the most High Elf stereotyped looking elf she never encountered. He was taller than Athnaris, and his beautiful and sharp traits were frozen in a patronizing expression. His skin was a pale gold and his long hair was almost silver.He was wearing black robes embroidered with gold patterns. The robes had boots and gloves assorted to it. This was the most fashionable ensemble she had seen in Skyrim since she was there. His golden eyes were staring in the sky-blue eyes of the half-elf, like they were challenging each other with this exchange of glances. Kara was mesmerized by the coldness in such a stunning face. She could almost feel the sparks between them as the High Elf said with his velvet voice:

“Such an interesting encounter… A half-breed and an adorably small Nord… Has the new counselor of the Archmage, I, Ancano, have to ask you who you are and what do you want.”

Oh, so he didn’t ignore her presence. She felt flattered has the combat of will between him and Athnaris continued. The half-elf answered coldly:

“I am Athnaris Kaeius, the Last Dragonborn, mercenary and also, an ancient student of the College. My companion is Kara Black, a woman who came from another world, completely and, incidentally, a Chosen of Julianos. We are here to send her back to her world, if possible.”

It was the first time Athnaris ever announced himself as the “Last Dragonborn.” She heard the rumors and the stories. He was a fucking dragon in mortal flesh and he didn’t tell her?! They had to have a conversation later… But right now, her focus was caught by the way Ancano looked at her with a new spark of interest and said deliberately slowly:

“Really, really interesting… I will follow the progress of your quest closely. You can venture forth.”

And he got out of the way. Athnaris takes her by the arm to made her walk away from Ancano and the fascination she had for his “intelligent bad boy” look. He released her in the stairs, saying:

“This Oblivion of Thalmor is trouble. Don’t get fooled by the pretty altmer charm, he is a gods-damned snake who hates everything not elvish.”

Kara was sure it couldn’t be that bad, even if she didn’t really know him. But now, all she could care about was that light coming from upstairs. The answers were so close! Her home too! She was shaking with excitement and nervosity. As she was going closer and closer to the Archmage’s door, flashes passed before her eyes.

A indescriptive face with a hood. Athnaris’s blue eyes. An altar with a pyramid.Her, in the most beautiful mage robes she had ever seen, blasting spells at a man’s side. The triangular mark in her hand. There was a voice in her head, soft and deep. A man’s voice. He said to her:

“I didn’t go through all these problems to bring you here just to let you go, right now. You have a quest, Kara. Try all you want, this kind of spells will bounce on you like the sword on the scales of a dragon.”

The voice then laughed, a pleasant laughter, and disappeared.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi people! Life got in my way this winter, I'm really sorry it took that long to complete. It's a bit smaller than usual, but another chapter is gonna come out tomorrow. Hope you will still enjoy it!
> 
>  
> 
> -Athnaris POV-

The half-elf didn’t understand what was happening. One second, she was running to the door, the second later, she froze. Her gaze was lost into Oblivion and tears began to fall silently down her pale cheeks. After a minute, Kara turned her gaze toward him, a fury burning in her eyes while she was still crying, and said:

“I think we will need more efforts than we originally thought, but we are gonna send me back! I didn’t come this far just to be stopped by a supposed god.”

Athnaris stopped for a moment, shocked by the information. Was his deductions correct? Did the god of magic was not ready to let his new pupil go? Did he talk to her? He hoped that wouldn’t become a habit, or at least, the Dragon Soul hoped that. Was he becoming really jealous of a god, by Mara?! He asked with an incredulous expression on his sharp features:

“Wait, what? Did Julianos talk to you? What happened?”

She answered with a slight incertitude on her previously furious face:

“I think so? He said that he had brought me here and doesn’t want me to go so soon, that I have a quest to complete and that “that” kind of spell will bounce on me…”

He was right, and to add to it, it was Julianos himself who had brought her here! “That” kind of spell was probably all the spells related to realm travel. If she had a quest to do, they should find what her quest was supposed to be. Maybe it was related to him because she was sent to him in a way that he couldn’t refuse her presence. With a now calm expression, he said:

“Yeah, it’s certainly him. But Kara, he’s the god of magic. If he said the spells won’t work on you, it won’t work. The only way to get you out of here is to find what is your quest and to do it.”

She looked at him with a dumbfounded face and said:

“There’s really no other way around? Gods really exist here?”

Nodding slowly, he said with a compassionate glance:

“Yes, I’m sorry… The College could still help us. The Archmage could help us find your quest and maybe offer you a place as a student here. You could learn from a better teacher than myself and be ready for your quest. I won’t let you do it if you are not prepared enough, you should know it by now.”

He had offered her the best alternative he could think of, but he knew she won’t like it. She had gone through so much in the last days… She took a moment to consider everything and said with this fragile tone she had the first time her magicka awaken:

“Okay… I will stay here to study magic and find my quest. It’s the most reasonable plan.”

Relief overwhelmed him, he was worried that she would just refuse and try something else more dangerous. He said with a small smile:

“Perfect, at least I won’t worry about your safety while I’m gone.”

He saw fear and sadness appear in the eyes of Kara. Athnaris shouldn’t have said that… He didn’t plan to let her by herself but Dragon Soul was hungry. It tried to push him to go hunting some dragons for days. He had to satisfy his draconic side, to soothe the hunger, to be stronger, for her own protection. She asked with a voice broken with concern and despair:

“You leave me here alone? Why do you have to go? I thought that you were my friend…”

These words were like a knife in his heart. It pained him to make her suffer from loneliness like that and he thought that he was her friend too… What kind of friend abandons the other in a world she barely knows? A roar in his head shook his mind back to reason. He said, a bit of pain in his voice:

“I am really sorry, Kara. I consider you as a friend too, it’s just… Well, I am the Dragonborn. I am not alone in my mind, my Dragon soul is there too. It’s been days that it tried to make me hunt other dragons for their powers. I decided that, for a while, I will listen to it. I will gain more power and then come back here to go on this quest with you. Can you understand why I do that?”

To his own hears, he almost sounds as crazy as when she said the name of the place she was coming from. He hoped that she would understand. Tears flooding her emerald eyes, she nodded and said with a coldness that was absent from her face:

“I want something to guarantee me that you will come back, then I will let you go.”

Mara is praised for the understanding nature of the young woman. Her request was fair considering he forgot her the first time… He agreed with a simple head movement and added:

“Firstly, we have to talk to the Archmage about your studies here and then, when we say goodbye, I will give it to you.”

Kara looked sad at that perspective but she still turned toward the Archmage door to enter. Athnaris cursed against his Dragon soul, who answered with an angry growl, and followed her, hoping that this stupid hungry side of himself won’t cost him the friendship of Kara.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with a touch of Ancano and studying. I'm inspired these days, it's possible that I keep doing more chapters in the next days.
> 
>  
> 
> -Kara POV-

It’s already been a week since Athnaris left again. Before leaving, he offered her the last thing he possessed from his dead sister; an earing made with silver and sapphire. Since then, she wore it continuously, conscious of its value. Kara had felt deep inside that it was a big sign of trust from him. That and his confession about his Dragon soul whispering things to him. She understood why he had to go, but she didn’t like it nonetheless. In fact, she didn’t like being separated from him at all. Her feelings were confused toward Athnaris and she decided not to think about it too much.

It was also a week since she began to study magic and it’s been far from Hogwarts in Harry Potter. She had joined the class of Toldfir, an old Nord with a grandfather vibe to him. Her class was composed by a younger Nord, a female Dunmer with an edgy vibe and what seemed like a real life cat furry, a male Khajiit. They learned a practical spell at the beginning, but since then, it was just good old studying of books. Kara did see Ancano around again, but she never tried to talk to him. Especially after what she heard about him among the students… All the girls of the school can agree on that; he was beautiful, intelligent and dangerous. An explosive combination… She liked the College more than she initially thought. It was calm and friendly. She felt like in her first year of university again. 

An hour earlier, Toldfir announced that they will make a class trip tomorrow. A visit into old ruins that were built by the first humans of the continent. The young woman was thrilled to explore ancient ruins but mostly for the architecture part. The fact that humans were still destructive conquerors who fight with natives of the lands they found even in this world was kind of depressing. So, she tried to focus on the good sides of all this. She was now heading to the library, hoping to get some books on the history of Skyrim not to be lost when references will be made about it. As she was entering the last corridor before the library, a velvet voice she recognized immediately said behind her:

“Well, well, isn’t that the human from another world? I assume you were not able to go back to where you from…”

Oh shit, there she was, stuck in a conversation with the dangerous guy everyone kinda feared or despised. She turned toward the Thalmor Agent and answered him with a neutral tone:

“You are correct. Julianos forbid me to go home before I do the quest he want me to do.”

Damn whatever divines powers of Nirn, he shouldn’t be that attractive… He was looking at her, arms crossed and a wicked half-smile on his face. Like, Athnaris was handsome, but Ancano was next level. She understood why the mother of the half-elf was charmed by this kind of beauty. A spark of amusement glowed in his golden iris and he said:

“Not surprising. Even if it’s shame Julianos needed a human not even from Nirn…”  
And there was the not so charming personality… Annoyed by his attitude, she crossed her arms and said with an irritated tone:

“Then if I’m only a lucky human, why do you even bother talking to me?”

The high elf raised one of his perfect eyebrows and closed the distance between them in two steps. His magnificent eyes glanced into hers and he said, his voice lower than before and dominating her from his vertiginous height:

“Because you were chosen by a god nonetheless. I need to know why, why you are worthy of all this power. The best way to know it is to study you closely…”

The tension was palpable and Kara’s heart was racing inside of her chest. What did he mean by that? Her gaze was stuck into his iris who looked like two pools of melted gold when he smiled even more wickedly and adds:

“Anyway… Like you said, you probably aren’t that special. You can go on your way, I won’t hold you back from your studies any longer.”

And turned away from her, going toward the stairs, leaving behind only a slight trace of his perfume of bergamot and ember wood. Kara let out a breath she didn’t even know she was holding. He was terrifying and so attractive at the same time, she was going crazy… She quickly walked toward the library, trying to forget that the only Thalmor Agent of the school was watching her actions very closely from now on. That was bad, really bad. If Athnaris was there, she wouldn’t worry that much. The Last Dragonborn were surely stronger than a skilled mage. But she wasn’t or at least, she felt like she wasn’t.

She played nervously with the earing on her right ear while entering the library. This place and the old orc who managed it was usually relaxing, but, with this new stress upon her shoulders, she wasn’t able to relax. She got through the aisles hastily, looking for the history books. When Kara had found what she was searching for, she goes to Urag’s desk to tell him which books she had taken. The old orc, while writing down the titles, said with his usual severity:

“Don’t let Ancano play with your mind, lass. He may look threatening but he will soon be no more than a cockroach under your boot. Also, you know the rules, take care of these books.”

Was she so worried that it showed? And could he be so certain about that? Anyway, what Urag said calmed her down a bit. He was right, Ancano barked more than he bites. With a soft smile, she answered:

“You’re right… Thank you Urag, I will make sure to take care of them.”

She then retired to her room, her pile of books under her arm. Kara was decided to read everything tonight, not only to be prepared for the class trip, but also to forget what happened with Ancano, to forget she missed Athnaris already.


End file.
